Goodfield plant defies closure news

Officials with the farm equipment manufacturer Case New Holland announced in October 2006 they would be closing the Goodfield plant at the end of 2007.

But the factory maintains a constant hum with no official word from the higher-ups about the facility's final closing date.

FRANK RADOSEVICH II

Officials with the farm equipment manufacturer Case New Holland announced in October 2006 they would be closing the Goodfield plant at the end of 2007.

That deadline came and went, but the massive, 233,000-square-foot plant remained open - the company stating some aspects of its production would still be needed until March 2008.

Now, with the year already half over, the factory maintains a constant hum with no official word from the higher-ups about the facility's final closing date.

"There was some unexpected demand is probably the best way to say it," Tom Witom, spokesman for the manufacturer, said of the reasoning behind the Goodfield facility's staying power.

On Wednesday, the Burr Ridge-based company posted record second quarter earnings - up 52 percent - raising its shares more than 30 percent.

Even though the number of manufacturing jobs continue to decline throughout Illinois and the country, a gangbuster year in the agriculture business has helped sustain the farm equipment industry.

Pete Fandel, crop systems educator with the University of Illinois Extension in Woodford County, said the company's good fortune is a reflection of the wider industry. Lower interest rates on loans, more tax incentives on purchases and robust prices on commodities like corn and soy beans have encouraged farmers to buy.

"Basically demand for the last year has been outstripping supply," he said of the situation for farm equipment manufacturers. "This is probably one of the best years they have had in a long time."

The factory, which produces tillage and fertilizer equipment, currently employs 26 salaried and 210 hourly workers who cover slightly more than a full eight-hour shift. After publicizing the closure, Case New Holland eventually sought to hire back some employees who were let go or left voluntarily.

According to the online job listing Web site Careerbuilder.com, the company posted three openings at the Goodfield location earlier this month.

Once housing more than 250 employees, the company was expected to cut more than 200 jobs by July 2007 and move operations to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada, to improve its manufacturing efficiencies within a larger facility.

But rumors have circulated that large oil and mining projects around Saskatchewan have made finding skilled employees difficult. That, in turn, could help hold the Woodford factory's spot as a necessary piece of the larger puzzle.

Village President Ross Hohulin said the company has not made public any future plans for the local site. But the fact that the business is still running - and paying tax dollars - is always cause for a celebration.

"For the area, the people employed there, that's always a plus when they stay open," he said.

And as for when the plant may finally close its doors? "Nothing's concrete at this time," Witom said.

Frank Radosevich II can be reached at 686-3142 or fradosevich@pjstar.com.